Not a Fan: week 5

I think week 5 is right, with work I've had to miss some...

I've heard it said by many different pastors, authors, and friends that when we stray away from Christ it opens a foothold for Satan to come in and do some work... This week in the Not a Fan series, we get to see this at a high level.

What I took away most is how a person, living as a fan... who would even classify themselves as a Christian... can be used by Satan. In the absence of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we leave ourselves open and vulnerable to the will of Satan. Remembering who Satan is, we realize that possibly the most damage he can cause to the Kingdom of God is to infest the life of someone who believes that they are in fact a Christian.
We all know the type... like the character of Bill, can quote the Bible, knows the laws, and is often in line with the world's stereotype of Christianity. Combine that with the amazing abilities of Satan, and his knowledge of the Bible, and his love for twisting the words of God... What do you get? A religious zealot in the express lane to Hell.

Without the personal relationship with Christ, Satan will use God's word to convince us of our salvation through being "good". We will overlook the need of grace, love, and faith that are so evident in scripture. Satan uses "good people" to do damage to the ministry of Christ. He uses them in church ministry to deceive, he causes otherwise right-meaning people to use God's word to cause pain and hate instead of to promote love and grace.

We need to check ourselves and make sure we know that, as James says in his book, nothing that is evil comes from God...

We need to be in daily conversation with God, strengthening our relationship to Him... Minimizing the space for Satan in our life, protecting ourselves from his tricks.